Automatic railway gate and signal apparatus



N. P. THEQHLOS.- AUTOMATIC RAILWAY GATE AND SIGNALAPPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 24, 1919.

Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

III

UNITED STATES' PATENT OFFICE.

NICHOLAS P. THEOFILOS, F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

Application led December 24, 1919. Serial No. 347,126.

To all fw/1,0m it may concern Be it known that I, NICHOLAS P. THE- orILos, a c itizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in an Automatic Railway Grate and Signal Apparatus, of which the following is a speciication.

This invention relates to improvements in automatically operated railway gates and signal devices of the ty e disclosed in my co-pending application erial No. 347,125, filed December 24, 1919, and has for its ob ject to provide an improved car carried circuit controlling mechanism particularly designed for use in connection with electric railways, although not necessarily limited to such use.

A further object is the provision of an apparatus of this character wherein conductors interposed in the gate and signal actuating circuits are arranged contiguous to the railway track and are directly engaged by car carried devices whereby to close said cir- `cuits and actuate the devices as the car reaches a predetermined point in its approach to the road or highway crossing the railway..

With these and other objects in view as will appear as the description proceeds the invention comprises the novel features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be more fully described in the following specification and set forth with particularity in the claim appended hereto.

Figure 1 represents a diagrammatical view of a section of an electric railway illustratin `the invention appliedto use.

Rig. 2 represents a fragmental side elevation of a railroad illustrating` a modification of the invention.` i

Referring to the drawing in detail wherein similar reference` numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views and having particular `reference to the construction disclosed in Fig. 1, the numerals 5 and 6 indicate the rails of a double track of an electric railway equipped with the usual` overhead trolley wire or conductors 7 and 8 vadequately supported frornthe hanger arms way car 10 is provided with the usual propelling motor 12 having the ground connection 13 with one of the wheels of the car and having its opposite pole coiniccted with the trolley wheel through a conductor 1-l, a pre-- fel-red type of rheostat being preferably interposed between the motor and the trolleywheel for producing such variations in the current as will control the rate of speed of the car.

IAt the point of intersection oiE the railway with a road or highway, the usual pivoted gates 15 are arranged as a measure oi protection to traffic. The present invention contemplates the automatic operation of the railway gates by a motor 16 .which is operativelyconnected with the gates in the manner suggested in my co-pending application Serial Number 347,125, filed December 24, 1919. An electric bell or other type of signal device designated generally by the numeral 17 is arranged at a point adjacent to the .crossinor for frivinfr audible signal. at the t. b C: u)

approach of a car. The bell is of a compound type being provided with the usual vibrating clappcr 18 having an armature 19 connected with its opposite extremity and adapted for alternate actuation by opposed sets of electro-magnets 20 and 21. One terminal of the coil of each electrdmagnet 2O and 21 is connected by a ground wire 22 with the track rails 5 6.

Relatively short overhead conductors 24 are suspended from the hanger arms of the trolley poles 9 in adequately spaced relation upon each side of the road or highway crossing and are provided with upwardly curved ends to insure proper engagement of the auxiliary trolley wheel 25 carried by an arm 26 of the main trolley arm 11. The adjacent extremities of the overhead conductors 23 are connected by conductors 27 with the terminal of the coil of the electro-magnet 20 op-V posite the ground connection 22.

The e uipment of the car consists, in addition to t e auxiliary trolley arm and wheel of a manually operable switch 28 arranged withinl convenient reach of the operator of the car and having one of its poles connected by a conductor 29 with the conductor 14 whereby current from the main trolley wire 8 or 9, according to which track the car is traveling` on, is conducted to one pole of the switch 28. The opposite pole of the switch is connected by a conductor 30 with the auxiliary trolley wheel 25 whereby the latter is energized When engaged with the trolley to close the circuit to the electro-magnet 2O and cause the operation olf the signal hell.

An inner pair of conductors S2 and 33 is Suspended from the hanger arms of the trolley poles 9 at points on opposite sides of the road or highway crossing and inwardly oi the conductors 23 and 2i the adjacent terminals of the' conductors 32 and 33 are connected 1oy conductors Se and 35, respectively7 With one pole of the niet r i6j the opposite pole of the motor being; connected directly with one of the rails o' the railnfay track whereby to complete the electrical circuit to the motor 16 and consequently cause operation oll the latter.

rlhe conductors and are also ron-A necoed with the terminal of the electro-rn net 2l opposite the ground connection 22 whereby the circuit to the magnet is closed simultaneously with the closure or" the motor circuit.

rlhe operation of the apparat-us n ay briefly stated as follows:

A l0 approaching the road or nighway crossing from the direction l:

indicated in l engages its supplementary trolley wheel 25 with the conductor 2l t ierehy closing the circuit to the magnets 2O from the track rail (i through the nonductor 22, coil of the magnet 20, conductors 27 und 9^. duotor 305 switch 2S and conductors le to the trolley or 'feed wire S. rl

ilie ni nets 20 and 2l.,l will be understood, are provided With conventional types 'of circuit interrupters such as are ordinarily Yr-,tilized in conventional types of huzzers and bells for producing a yihratory movement of the clap per erm i8 hy which a rapid successi 1 Warning sounds is produced. As the miltrolley Wheel moves oil oi tl e terminal of the conductor 2l and nasses through the space between the adjacent torminals of the conductors and 32 'the operation of the signe-l device l? is momen tarily discontinued butV is promptly set in operation again upon contact o the auzrih iary trolley Wheel 25 with the inner conductor, the electro-nia. iet 21 losing utilizel in this instance to operate the signal and the circuit thereto beingV completed from the track rail 5 through the `ground connection and consequently the motor is set in operation and, being connected with the railway ln such instan/ern the in. switch ln tho operator o f th o ru ilnay the resunn'ltioil A on the oar pio the o1 .oiator again olor:- tno olorin ll' in operation c gates l5. Y v the overheat. cominci-ors may he dispensed with a rlnnged rnorhoitd muy has i i. f (fr course type of tho invention is :idol` l'ound desirable to l L moroso tl i portions o' the conductors i' nel: are onposwl J'or the and inonerty and instead i l \`v protection oit lilo or the oyerhezul trol Tiller shoe is substituted. lloWeyer:4 in o of the invention the our oonipnlenz' nd s gnnl. circi 'f' of 'l on elect i control ciiwuit carried 'u system? condi,

il@ loll@ i321' extendinf or u distance on either s' i highway crossings, seid wam/:lulllws og to and connecting` the opo "T51-51j ino 1 (T l 4 i 1 to sin ".r t n" su l cone-.u i'or siinnltoneously ogeratingz; with Said 'es menno carried hy the cnrs olf the system Jrer closing the circuit between said conductors and the control circuit cui ried thereon]l and manna l y actuated switch carried by each our olf the system 'lor onor ating' the control circuits suhstantially lund for the purpos-l set forth.

ln testimony whereof, l :illii: my signature hereto.

NICHOLAS R THEOFILOS.

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